Reunion - Saturday, March 12 2005
1800: whoaa...cool. just got back from an afternoon of jamming around on keyboard/guitar @ my buddy Don's place. he's been logging some serious studio time @ a local studio w/ his singer, n just last week he tells me he's got this song he needs me to play keys for. O_o "ok...??" but yeh, pretty out of the blue, just brought my crappy PSR-290 over to his house & basically just played it out by ear; him doing basic rhythm on guitar, "trying" to sing the tune (his singer couldn't make it), & me feeling my way around the on the keys. added some lyrics, a lil riff here n there, & recorded a few sample tracks for him to take to his buddy @ the studio to see if we get the light. i gotta say i was impressed. we slugged it out in what took just over 4 hours & half a box of pizza pops. took some stuff home on paper to work out some more specific details on my part, now i'm just nervous about what's gonna happen when we get into the studio. =S
2223: stuffed. just got back from a family dinner/gathering @ *deep breath* dad's aunt's oldest daughter's oldest son's youngest daughter's 1 month banquet. *whew* ironic; she's born on February 13, which happens to be a significant date for me too. huh. neway, there was lots of food. doggy bags for everyone afterwards too. even though it sounds like these are really distant relatives, they really aren't b/c dad's aunt used to take care of me a lot when i was a lil kid afterschools n stuff, so we're pretty close w/ that side of the family. crazy though; dad's aunt has 6 kids from my dad's generation, so that's 6 aunts & uncles, plus their spouses, w/ each couple having a min. of 2 kids each, plus the great grandkids...o man. there must've been 30something ppl in that house tonight.
it was great seeing them though. ever since i've been away for school n stuff i haven't seen them for at least 3 years. the old faces i still recognize, but man the kids have multiplied; new faces/cousins i didn't even know i had were popping up all over the place! it was cool catching up n getting to know 'em though, n esp. since i'd just come back from visiting the village in China, which a lot of my uncles/aunts that were raised in Canada have never been to before. they seemed fascinated by my descriptions of the house & i think some are really eager to find time to go back & discover their roots. cool, i'll have to hurry my ass up & get those pictures printed for 'em.
Inspired - Sunday, March 13 2005
crap. the songwriting bug bit me. listening to that demotape in the car during the drive to church n back this morning must've gotten my creative juices flowing somehow...all of a sudden felt like writing (trying to write) something tonight. just me n my guitar, it's prbbly been like close to 3hrs, but this tune's definitely starting to take shape. cool...hopefully i'll have a decent version ready to go in a few days. o yeah, n of course it's inspired by *ahem* yeah...of course, i'm still a sap in some ways. alright, enough of that, back to the REAL Raph - i found THIS while taking a break:
this should be interesting...
from Cutting Meat to Composing Music - Monday, March 14 2005
1813: booya! just got back from the gym, but that's not why i'm happy. 95% done w/ this composition...cool. i dunno if it's a stroke of "genius" (hmmm...maybe just a stroke), but whatever it is something finally hit me n i wrapped it up after spending the whole morning/afternoon on it. had to play my fingers to the bone on the guitar all day, but it's pretty cool considering i had no formula/idea at all yesterday; just had a few verses & a line/bridge here n there, didn't even have a title or a chorus thought up. but then i guess that's how it goes w/ this kinda stuff. thought up a chorus today, & settled on a tentative working title. but i talk too much. maybe i'll reveal more later. alright, back to...
DAY VII: Off to China (Shenzhen, Zhang Mu Tou) - Friday, February 11
0750: wake up, leave for Kowloon Tong MTR @ 0830 to meet Cora & Aunt Yu Ming
0930: cross border into Shenzhen, China. MTR from Lao Hu Stn. to Shi Jie Zhi Chuang Stn.
- it’s like friggin musical chairs getting onto the train. U line up in front of the doors but ppl crowd all around u & when an empty train pulls up, the moment the doors open ppl scramble in & act like there’s a Boxing Day sale for seats or something…and 10seconds later there’s not a glimmer of butt-space to be found. Yeesh…
1230: arrive @ Shenzhen’s “Window to the World” (Shi Jie Zhi Chuang). It’s basically a theme park w/ miniature models/replicas of world famous monuments & different cultural icons (i.e. Eiffel tower, pyramids, Niagara falls)
1600: leave & catch train towards Guangzhou (Cora goes back to HK cuz she’s gotta work), get off @ Jeung Muk Tow where Aunt has a place
- meet cousin Alex (Cora’s older brother) & his wife, who’s name is…(gotta brace yourself for this one) Whiskas. Yup, that’s right. W-H-I-S-K-A-S. Supposedly it sounds like her Chinese name, but her family picked it b/c they really do like cats, and were fully aware of the famous cat food brand. O_o
1930: I snuck off n walked around, went back to the apartment & had a nap; then we were off to dinner w/ a bunch of Aunt’s friends @ some restaurant, then walked around the streets @ night.
- interesting question dawned on me during dinner: why do Chinese ppl take such care in covering their mouths while picking their teeth w/ toothpicks, yet make no attempt whatsoever at covering their noses while ruthlessly picking them in public?! Yeesh…
- Aunt happens to love yams, & street vendors sell them all over the place so the air is filled w/ the scent/stench of ‘em.
- Aunt, Alex’s wife, and all the other females buy a bunch of yams. I personally don’t have a thing for ‘em, but she convinces me to try some anyway, provided that Alex has a bit too. Then after I eat ‘em she says they make you fart. Me n Alex look at each other: O_o we’re gonna be spending the night in the same house as a bunch of the “yam eaters”. Uy…
0030: home, shower, sleep (praying that I don’t smell “yam gasses” in the middle of the night!) O_o
End Day VII
Full Album
DAY VIII: Massages, Manicures, & Mahjong - Saturday, February 12
0915: wake up, have a hard-boiled egg, & warm soymilk (in a bag) from street vendors for breakfast.
- after chilling @ home for a bit, 12 of us cram into this tiny van and are off to “yum cha” @ “Hoi Wan Seafood Restaurant”
- this place was a lot nicer than the one we went to last night: had our own private room w/ 2 tables, widescreen plasma on the wall (they got plasmas everywhere over here! Even on transit n stuff), even had an adjacent private bathroom
- cheap too. 12 ppl and the bill was 260RMB, which is just over $40CDN. Sweet…
- upon leaving the restaurant we pass by a lot of stores/shops/vendors & someone brings up the topic of how there’s just so much fake merchandise in China that it’s not even funny anymore (i.e. fake “down” blankets, fake powder milk for nursing babies, fake clothes, etc…)
So I ask Alex:
Me: “yo, did u fart after eating those yams last night?”
Alex: “no actually. You?”
Me: “no man…must’ve been fakes.”
- went for a foot massage, then a back massage, then lunch. (<$10CDN for 1Hr foot massage & 1Hr back massage?! Crazy…)
- more shopping around, saw some suits for super cheap ($30CDN?!) but they weren’t that nice so I passed, then Aunt wanted to get a manicure cuz it’s cheap here so we did.
- 10RMB for BOTH hands, that’s like less than $2CDN! Convinced me n Alex to try it too, but I only consented under the condition that it would be a GIRL doing my nails. Don’t want some china dude holding my hand, that’s not cool. The price includes drawing pictures/painting ur nails too. I didn’t want nething too colourful/girly, so I tell the chick to write the Chinese character for turtle on my thumb. Nice…
- after that adventure, more walking around, bought a bamboo flute off the street for <$3CDN
- back to “Hoi Wan” for dinner: VIP room again – the “Pearl Room”
- this room was just like the one in the morning, except it had a crazy motorized Mah Jong table in the corner.
2300: this time we cram 13 ppl into a van the same size as the one this morning & head home.
0015: crash.
End Day VIII
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